The present invention relates, in general, to hand tools for use in connection with repair or adjustment of spectacle frames and the like, and more particularly to a hand tool for use with spring-hinge type spectacles wherein the temple piece is coupled to the lens frame portion by a spring-hinge coupling structure, wherein the tool facilitates insertion or extraction of the temple screw.
Heretofore considerable difficultly has been encountered in replacing the temple screw connecting the temple pieces of spectacles with the eye glass frames, where a spring-hinge type connection is employed. Typically, the temple pieces at the front end portion thereof include a hinge component incorporating a spring structure which accommodates a limited amount of flexible movement of the associated temple member relative to the frame for the lenses beyond the normal range allowed by the temple screw, the spring hinge component being removably connected to the hinge component fixed to the lens frame by a tiny temple screw. Usually, the assistance of another person to hold the components in appropriate position during insertion or extraction of the temple screw, or the use of a complex and expensive special vice, has been required to achieve such insertion or extraction of the temple screw. This is because insertion of the tiny temple screw in such spring-hinge type spectacles requires precise proper alignment of the temple and lens frame while maintaining sufficient pressure to overcome the tension of the spring within the hinge structure during the screw insertion procedure.
An object of the present invention is the provision of a convenient hand tool which holds the temple and lens frame of spring-hinge type spectacles in proper alignment and with proper pressure maintained to overcome the tension of the spring structure, allowing only one hand to be used for the tool while leaving the operator's other hand free to insert or extract the hinge screw.